good morning. it's the law. president obama signs the historic bill to overhaul health care as a new poll shows more americans now favor than oppose it. so what does that mean for republicans fighting for a repeal? we'll ask senators from both sides of the aisle. bond denied. amy bishop, the fired professor and mother of four accused in that shooting rampage at the universi of alabama huntsville appears in court for the first time and her attorney says he plans to argue bishop is insane. and monkey business. a daring fugitive in florida driving authorities bananas for over a year, he even has his own facebook page oday" wednesday, march 24th, 2010. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and welcome to "today" on this wednesday morning. i'm meredith vieira. now i know where matt went. he's in florida. ouch. >> and i'm ann curry in for matt. >> oh, gosh. welcome back. >> thank you so much. >> a lot of things happening since you were gone. >> no kidding. some major news. >> health care reform. president has signed health care reform and now the senate begins debating a package of fixes to the new law. republican senators have vowed to pull out all the stops to try to derail the process. we'll discuss that with the majority whip of the senate, illinois's dick durban and republican senator jim demint who's already introduced legislation repeal the new health care law all together. >> one person who could barely contain his excitent was vice president joe biden, in fact using some very colorful language while he congratulated president obama during the signing ceremony which was picked up by the open microphone. we'll have more on that and other slip-ups that weren't necessarily meant to be heard around the world. an important warning about baby slings. they're being recalled because they could potentially suffocate newborns. but there is a new law of the land when it comes to health care in the u.s. and what republican senators plan to do to block it. nbc's kelly o'donnell is on capitol hill with more. >> reporter: good morning, meredith. step one, more than a dozen republican senators have offered their own bill to repeal the bill that involved democrats' health care reform. now that is a tough thing to do. now republicans, motivated conservatives and democrats are all trying to figure out the rules of engagement for this phase of the fight. usually when a bill is signed and moved into law, that quiets things down, but nothing has been typical here. even washington veterans wanted a keepsake from a ceremony that may define the obama years. and to victors go the pens. 22 of them. >> i've got to use every pen so it is going to take a long time. >> reporter: the president's signature made health care law and his opponents made their law. >> because those fighting changes are still out there. they'll be making a lot of noise. >> reporter: conservative voices are turning up the volume. >> health care, they control that. >> reporter: popular host glenn beck of fox news tells his audience that freedom has been lost and socialism has gained ground. >> what happened this week? haven't we just been spanked? haven't most of the country -- doesn't most of the country feel like they've been spanked over health care? you bet. i do. you do. a lot of people do. >> reporter: some of that public anger boiled over last weekend with hateful words aimed at democratic lawmakers. >> and greetings to you, ladies and gentlemen. >> reporter: the provocative platform rush limbaugh commands can add fuel to the fire. >> we need to defeat these bastards. we need to wipe them out. we need to chase them out of town. >> reporter: political columnist and author john avlon. >> i think the extreme spiel empowered the center, the moderate majority of americans feel embattled. the extremes feel like they have powerful television shows and political parties who's got their back. >> in fairness to the president, what was he referring to -- >> reporter: republican john mccain says disagreements over issues like higher taxes, medicare cuts and bigger government spending is one thing. but behavior is another. >> obviously all of us condemn it, but there is a lot of paion out there and there is a lot of anger because people feel that they are disconnected from the people they send to washington to represent them. >> reporter: and the republicans i talk to, meredith, say that is why they are offering amendments, proposed changes to the legislation that they believe reflect some of the concern that is out there among their base, their voters. and so that went late into the night last night. it will happen again today. and democrats say they feel very strong about their ability to knock down those attempts to change the bill because they think they have enough votes and enough wind at their back to hold firm. >> we'll see. kelly o'donnell, thank you very much. dick durbin of illinois is the senate majority whip and republican senator jim demint of south carolina introduced legislation tuesday to fully repeal the health care law. good morning to both of you. >> good morning. >> senator demint, if i could start with you, back in july you said, "if we're able to stop obama on this," meaning this health care reform bill, "it would be his waterloo, it will break him." well, the bill is now law and a former speech writer for former president george w. bush says republicans messed up big by adopting the "hell, no" approach to this bill. do you still feel it is the president's waterloo or is it now your party's waterloo? >> well, i think we're going to find out in november. americans are very angry because this comes on the heels of the government taking over general motors and chrysler and our largest insurance company, our largest mortgage company. there is a lot of anger out there and i think this november election is going to be thdo we really want the government running all areas of our lives? >> you talk about the anger but according to the latest "usa today"/gallup poll, margin of 9%, say it is a good thing. who's out of touch? >> with all the hype and propaganda that we would get above. but i think as people understand just as we're seeing this week, there is not money in this bill to pay doctors to seen our senior citizens and medicare. they're trying to pass a separate bill this week just to make those payments for one more month. so the feel fix of health care is not happened with this bill and that will begin to come out over the next year as we go into this election. i don't think the anger's going to go away. i think you're going to see it continue to build and i believe i owe it to my constituents and amicans everywhere to commit to try to repeal this thing over the next year or two. >> senator durbin, when the house sent the reconciliation bill over to the senate, it was for the understanding it would be passed as is. as majority whip, can you tell us ts morning, do you have the votes right now do that? >> we have the votes to pass reconciliation but the republicans are going to offer many amendments. we saw some of them last night. now this is a bill about budget deficit reduction and health care reform, and one of the republican amendments wants a public referendum in the dirict of columbia on day marriage. another republican amendment wants us to go after the organization a.c.r.n. which just announced its bankruptcy. another amendment says no prescription viagra for rapists. i mean when you go through this long list you say, common sense tells you this is a political exercise for too many on the other side of the aisle. >> but how doemocrats vote against those amendments without enraging their constituents back home who will be voting in november? >> we're going to tell our people back home that it is time to govern, it is time to lead and address important issues. the other underlying bill, for example, make sure health insurance will be more affordable for people who are working. it also provides for closing the doughnut hole which means for seniors on medicare, there will be help for paying for prescription drugs. let's get down to the real issues in this bill and help families and businesses and people across america with health care issues. >> senator demint, by sorting out these issues, don't republicans be seen as obstructionists or sore losers here? >> well, senator durbin and the democrats are trying to distract from other issues here. this is another takeover bill. they're taking over the whole student loan program in asking our students through higher interest rates to help fund this health care bill. and it also takes more from social security. so they're talking about a few amendments and hoping that americans don't notice that this is another power grab, it's another tax increase, it's another attack on the entitlements that we owe our seniors from social security and medicare. so we're going to bring these issues up today and tomorrow as long as we can keep this debate going so americans can see what's being done here. that's one of the real frustrations that americans have is that so much of this has been done behind closed doors. people don't know what's in the bill. we're going to do everything we can to make sure people know what they're getting into and they know that we're committed to repeal it. >> yesterday senator mccain said -- or on monday, sorry, he said that he would not cooperate with the administration for the rest of the year because of what happened with health care reform. do you agree with that sentiment, and in fact do most republicans agree with that? >> i think so. this breaks i think a lot of protocols in the senate. i mean we look like we're fighting a lot of times but there's a lot that's done in a bipartisan way. i think using all these procedures and kickbacks and everything have broken that and i'm glad to hear senator graham and others saying that they're not going to work with the president on his big agenda to continue to take over areas of our economy and our culture. >> so senator durbin, does this mean that this is the end of bipartisanship and are democrats willing to go it alone? >> for some on the other side of the aisle i'm afraid bipartisanship hadn't started with this president. senator demint said, the goal was to break the president. president obama's reached out to the republican side of the aisle as well as democrats and look at bill that senator demint just spoke about. he's talking about our attempts to end an $8 billion-a-year subsidy to banks on the backs of students across america. we want to eliminate this government subsidy to banks because it adds to the cost of student loans. from senator demint's point of view that's a government takeover. >> we have to leave it at that, senator durbin. thank you so much. majority whip durbin and senator jim demint, thank you for your time this morning. this debate is far from over. how will the health care law impact your bottom line? six things you need to know in our next half-hour. now let's get a check of the rest of the morning's top stories, natalie morales is in for me at the news desk. good morning, everyone. today in washington high-level talks between the u.s. and pakistan. pakistan wants to be recognized as a nuclear weapons power. before today's meeting with pakistan's foreign minister, secretary of state hillary clinton was in mexico on tuesday. she promised help in curbing growing drug violence along the u.s.-mexican border. israel prime minister benjamin netanyahu met twice tuesday with president obama amid disputes over israel's settlement plans in east jerusalem. there were no photo-ops or statements afterwards. uniform standards in school lunches are being proposed. in denver, forecasters say the area could get between one and two feet of snow. overseas markets are mostly high they are morning after the dow closed tuesday at an 18-month high. cnbc's trish regan is at the new york stock exchange for us this morning. what's the focus there today, trish? >> good morning, natalie. focus is housing. we did get some numbers this week that suggest housing is under pressure. new data coming out today but the latest numbers are really indicating that existing home sales have fallen for the last three months. now that's an issue because it suggests that inventories are building. if inventory levels are high, then of course buyers have much more to select from but they may be more reluctant to buy overall in housing has a key part of this economy right now. >> trish regan at the new york stock exchange, thank you. in connecticut, two elderly sisters who haven't spoken to each other in five years faced off in court tuesday over a half a million dollar powerball jackpot. years ago they started buyg lottery tickets together and agreed to split any winnings but they had a falling-out in 2004 over a fight over a few hundred dollars. the next year one of them bought a powerball ticket with their brother and won a $500,000 jackpot so now the other sister is suing her. with play resuming tomorrow in the upset-filled ncaa men's basketball tournament, an illinois teen with autism claims perfection in his bracket picks for the first two rounds. now oddsmakers put the chances of that at 1 in 13 million. by the way, you want to know the team he is picking is purdue to win it all. check those brackets to see if that's who you're going for. 7:13 right now. back over to matt, ann and al. speaks 16. he may be right. >> they make good chicken. >> you look like the easter bunny today with me with those colors. >> thank you. don't tell them about spring time in the rockies. they have been getting slammed as you heard earlier. more snow on the way, two to four inches between denver and colorado springs. to the south of colorado springs, talking about as much as a foot. that's going to be a mess. ahead of this system we have a big storm, risk of strong storms from abilene up into ada, oklahoma. plenty of rain, showers and thunderstorms are starting to fire up. rainfall amounts, we are talking about generally one to two inches of rain in some isolated areas. generally though about a half-inch of rain. some of these strong good morning. sun up and a clear sky. the sunrise is under way. n came up at accept:05. we are in the 40s to near 50 in washington and that's with a blustery northwest wind. the wind will diminish as highs climb into the mid 60s and tonight partly cloudy and mid 40s and >> that's your latest weather. ann? >> al,thanks. a popular way for mothers to carry around their newborns but this morning more than a million baby slings are being recalled less than two weeks after a warning was issued about the suffocation danger that these devices may pose to infants. nbc's tom costello is in washington, d.c. with more on this story. tom, good morning. >> reporter: ann, good morning. a lot of moms, a lot of parents think this is a great way to bond with a baby, wearing the sling. but experts say if the baby isn't positioned properly, they can also pose a risk. a baby can't cry, and it can -- in fact some babies have -- suffocated in the fabric. kathleen ross was a happy, smiling 12-week-old when she went with her mom to run errands. but when ann went to take her baby out of the sling she had been wearing, something was terribly wrong. >> there was mucus with blood in it. just coming out of her nose, out of her right nostril. >> reporter: kathleen had suffocated. 1 of 14 such deaths over the past 20 years. in cities across the country, baby slings are as common as pacifiers and play dates. amanda keeps her baby caln in one. >> it's good for them. it comforts them. it's been shown to lower their blood pressure and calm them down and it's just nice to have them close. >> reporter: but after three children died just last year, the consumer product safety commission says certain slings made by the company infantino are not safe. now infantino has issued a voluntary recall of a million slings in the u.s. >> the infantino sling creates a deep pouch and children in that pouch have potential of suffocating. >> reporter: in a statement to nbc news, the company says safety is our number one concern and today'snnouncement of a free replacement program reflects this commitment. with so many baby slings on the market, the cpsc is warning parents about improperly holding babies in any sling. the baby's face should never be covered. the baby should never be too low in the sling. the baby should never be hunched with its chin touching its chest. and the baby's face should never be pressed tight against whoever is wearing the sling. babies should always face up and use caution with babies under 4 months. back in washington state, ann is a busy mom with two new children. but five years later, she can't forget how baby kathleen died in her arms. babies -- new babies are especially prone to be at risk here because their next muscles of course aren't strong enough to hold up their head. if you have one of these infantino slings, you're asked to cut the label off right here on the sling and mail it in for one of several replacements. and again, they're asking you be very careful with all slings and how your baby is positioned. ann, back to you. >> good infmation this morning, tom. thank you so much. 7:18. once again, here's meredith. now back to health care. just how big aeal was tuesday's signing ceremony? apparently vice president joe biden was a little too eager to share the answer with president obama. now he's landed in the cursing hall of fame. here's nbc's lee cowan. >> reporter: the thing about historic moments is there are microphones to capture it. yesterday, on tuesday, the president got an earful. whoa. what? damage control was instant and brief. the white house press secretary simply tweeted, "yes, mr. vice president, you're right." but did the president's face seem to fall as he looked at those two microphones in front of him. no doubt fearing the vice president's "f" bomb had just exploded in ears all across the country. >> thank you. >> reporter: within hours, there were t-shirts being hocked with the vice president's profane phrase emblazoned in black and white. >> we actually had orders for this shirt within three minutes of the shirt being presented on the site. >> reporter: while many made mr. biden's gaffe into a laughable moment, to others though it was more of a teachable one. >> i'm really disappointed. >> reporter: this 17-year-old foder of the "no cussing club" at his high school in south pasadena, california says it cheapened the moment. >> him using that language is telling kids across the world and adults that you can cuss whenever you want, cussing's fine. >> reporter: it probably was a pressure valve of some sort. in fact it was mark twain who once said that under certain circumstances, prove fafanity actually provides a release even compared to prayer. for some politicians, they seem to take it too literally. president george bush was caught creatively cursing. and a california assemblyman was taped bragging about his extramarital affairs. even ronald reagan, the great communicor, had some not-so-great communicating moments. >> i'm pleased to tell you today that i've signed legislation that will outlaw russia forever. we begin bombing in five minutes. >> reporter: in the end though, the vice president's boss didn't seem to be too mad. after all, the president himself has let a few rip, too. >> he's a jackass. >> reporter: unfortunateords unfortunately close to a mike. for "today," lee cowan, nbc news, los angeles. >> i don't know. i couldn't handle the spanking one. >> i know! >> get away. >> i know. some are worse than others, no question about it. i think a lot of people identified with it anyway. moving on -- just ahead, the professor and mother of four accused of killing three colleagues